Common Sense
It is not fitting for a Believer man or woman when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Apostle to have any option about their decision: if anyone disobeys Allah and His Apostle he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path. Al-Quran – 33:36
Allah says in the Quran that when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger, then it is the duty of every believer, man and woman to accept it with certainty, and confidence, unhesitatingly; for a believer should beyond all doubts, believe that the Lord Almighty can and will NEVER NEVER make a mistake, and what he reveals is, and will be the Universal Truth, and none can or would ever be able to refute its preciseness or accuracy; and Allah knows what was, is and will be, without the least doubt or confusion, and if a believer has doubt in this, then he is indeed far away from the Truth and is also in a clearly wrong path, and totally astray; so being the case, lets see our adherence to this:
It is He Who made the sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty) and measured out stages for her: that ye might know the number of years and to calculate (your days). Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain his Signs in detail for those who understand. Al Quran Sura 10 Ayah 5
Allah says, that Allah not only created the sun and the moon to calculate our days but also he created it in TRUTH that we should be righteous. Lets see as to how righteous we are:
The Solar calendar has seven days in a week, and so also the Lunar calendar, there is no difference in this what so ever, the Sunday, Monday of the week correspond to the lunar calendar and here also we have the same Sunday , Monday. – The 24 hours time difference; the time taken for the earth to revolve round its axis, is the same for the solar and the lunar calendar, if there is a 2 ½ hours difference for India and Saudi time in the Solar calendar, the same 2 ½ hours difference exists for the Lunar calendar also. – The Friday of the Solar Calendar is the same Friday for the Lunar Calendar also – and the entire Muslims of the World observe the Jumma Prayers as per the Lunar calendar on Friday on the very same day of the week without any confusion or variation; (i.e) The whole world prays the Jumma prayer within 24 hours; but when it comes to Eid celebration and Ramalhan fasting or Arfat day or Asurah day people confuse themselves totally, and what is very very distressing is the fact that these days are prolonged for example Ramalhan: lets take Saudi, it started fasting on the 1st of September 2008 which falls on Monday, those who sighted the moon thru the Satellite and Electronic Telescope started fasting on the 31st of August which falls on Sunday, and the Sunnath Jamath of India started fasting on 2nd September which falls on Tuesday; and some even started their fast on Wednesday.
Now leave Quran and Hadees just for a second, and just take your COMMON SENSE into account, how many 1st ‘s can there be in a month???; as per the Satellite decision 1st of Ramalhan fell on Sunday, as per the Saudi’s decision 1st of Ramalhan fell on Monday, as the per the Sunnath Jamath of India the 1st of Ramalhan fell on Tuesday; anyone with common sense will tell you that something is drastically wrong with the Lunar calendar – they will tell you that it is impossible for a month to have three days on which the 1st of the month would come consecutively and they would also say it is totally absurd and madness for each country and town to have a separate Lunar calendar.
Now lets see as to who is right and who is wrong!!!!:
The Sun, the Earth, and the Moon when they come in a straight line it becomes total eclipse, and this happens just once a month and this straight line is called CONJUNCTION, and once the Moon passes out of the shadow of the Earth – peeps out of the shadow and reflects the Suns light the new moon is born – meaning to say the previous month is over and the new month has begun, just as the midnight 12 O’Clock – when the second hand moves a little away from 12’O Clock position then the previous day is over and the next day is born, please do remember the moon too is moving like the hands of the clock without ever being stationary at any time; now tell me if someone says ” we didn’t see the Clock’s hand move will the previous day wait for them, or if they say we don’t except it will the previous day wait and keep waiting for their acceptance – I know it is absurd to say these things, well similarly it is absurd for people to say we didn’t see the moon or that we don’t accept the new moon the moon will not wait for them nor will the previous month be prolonged even for a second for their concurrence or acceptance, because these are automatic events and they do not wait for anyone or any country Just as midnight occurs for each country to specify the change of the day, so also Magrib the setting sun occurs for each country, where the day automatically changes to the next in the Lunar calendar, and so also the Month automatically changes to the next after the moon is sighted and consecutively when magrib the setting sun occurs for each country. i.e after the moon is sighted – when every country gets its sunset, it would automatically begin its next day and next month.
The Prophet (s.a.w) said sight the moon and start fasting and sight the moon and stop fasting. Very well – suppose a man wears a spectacles and sights the moon would you say we will not accept it – definitely not for everyone knows the spectacle will not lie it will only help the wearer to see the thing more clearly – similarly an electronic telescope and the satellite are here only to help us see things more clearly and they would not show us something which does not exist, they will not lie to us, ever since the telescope and the satellite have been invented there never has been an occasion where they have wrongly shown something which is not there. Allah says the Sun and the Moon are there to Calculate your time and day and month and year; and we have precise calculations, seconded and confirmed by the Electronic Telescope and the Satellite which checks to the preciseness and correctness of this – WHY SHOULD WE NOT ACCEPT IT ?????????Tell us one valid reason for not accepting this?????.
Now let me tell you what happens when we don’t accept these, we rely on hearsay or heresy rather than on established facts and Truth and many times we go wrong leading the entire crowd who follow us into wrong. (i.e) Lets take the Arfat day this year 2008; the Dhul Hajj Crescent or new moon was calculated to appear on 27th November 2008 at 16:56 UT (Universal Time) or GMT. And the Electronic Telescope and the Satellite confirmed to this without a seconds difference when the Crescent was actually born, but Saudi refused to accept this – well you may think what is the big hazard in changing or postponing it by one day??? – you see the actual Arfat day falls on 6th December but as Saudi did not accept the Satellite findings they began the month Dhul Hajj on the 29th instead of 28th November 2008, as was the fact and Saudi’s wanted to see the Crescent Moon with their Naked eye and then begin the month, hence the change in the beginning of the month naturally made a change in the Arfat day also, and they made the people stand on the 7th December – now tell me can we fix the Arfat day as and when we wish – Rasool (s.a.w) has said those who do not have Arfat do not have Haj – the Arfat day has to be on the 9th Dhul Hajj but as it happened this year it was on the 10th of Dhul Hajj – Will the people who came to Haj this year get an accepted Haj ????? Common Sense!!!!!!.Similarly if the people change the Ashura day from the 10th Muharram to the 11th Muharram with they get the virtues for it ???.
Lo! the number of the months with Allah is twelve months by Allah’s ordinance in the day that He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred: that is the right religion. So wrong not yourselves in them…………………………………….
Verily the Postphoning (of a prohibited month) is an addition to unbelief (Kufr): the unbelievers are led to wrong thereby: Quran- 9:36,37
The above passages speak about the Kafirs, but does it not say that the Believers too should refrain from making such mistakes which the disbelievers do of taking one month for another – one day for another – but should calculate and use the facilities (like the Clock, Telescope, & Satellite) we have with us to determine the exact time and day and month and year; and follow Allah’s command precisely without wronging ourselves with negligence and inaccurate calculations; for such miscalculations would amount to disbelief or unbelief ????? further more it would mean that Allah did not complete his perfect religion but left a flaw in it and people were all left in confusion, commotion, and uncertainty as far as the Islamic Lunar calendar was concerned – could this ever be TRUE?????.
Also take Ramalhan Eid day, the people who took the Satellite news would be celebrating the Eid on the exact day the Eid is ought to be celebrated, but all other people who did not accept this would be fasting on this day (the eid day), little knowing that fasting on the Eid day, or after the Crescent has been sighted is HARAAM, so also there is a great confusion on the beginning and ending of each month, the Ashura day, both the Eid days, Arfat day etc. etc. – why this confusion??? It is because we do not have a specific Universal Lunar Calendar !!!!! All the Muslims of the World, especially the Muslim Countries should unite in this and formulate this easy to make Universal Calendar with the precise calculations and Electronic Telescopic & Satellite findings only then would we be free from this ridicule – and Please do understand the Lunar Calendar is far more accurate than the Solar Calendar.
If you don’t then you will be transgressing the limit set by Allah and His Apostle, and remember the one who makes you transgress is Satan and obeying Satan you can never never achieve righteousness or salvation and sometimes it even takes you to Kufr (9:36,37) and you would not and cannot dream of getting any virtues from Allah – as Allah warns you:
if anyone disobeys Allah and His Apostle he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path.
Al-Quran – 33:36
Once Rasool(s.a.w) and a group of Sahabas were fasting and were travelling – when they reached a place, it was cloudy and Rasool(s.a.w) anticipating the setting sun ordered the Sahabas to break the fast; after breaking the fast the cloud dispersed and the sun was still on the horizon. The Sahabas asked the Prophet(s.a.w) “Ya Rasoolullah has our fast been wasted” to this Rasool(s.a.w) “No! we acted to our capacity, Allah will certainly accept our fasting”
By Asma bint Abi Bakr
Bukhari
Abu Dawood
1400 years ago that was the facility – suppose a Jamath today was in this same situation with the people having watches and cell phones if they broke their fast before the sun set on a cloudy day without utilizing the facilities, because Prophet(s.a.w) did not have such facilities would it be considered wise or madness????? Today, Alhumdulillah we have great facilities and faculties which enable us to make accurate decisions and following the religion in a much more easy manner – May Allah help us to analyze and understand Islam in an excellent manner and enact it in a way MOST pleasing to Allah and greatly beneficial to us, and them around us, and help us to use all our faculties and facilities in the most dignified Halaal manner (ameen) and please keep praying and efforting that we Muslims come out with a single Universal Lunar Calendar for the whole world immediately without fail, and without any delay or confusion.
Love & Regards
A.H.Nazeer Ahmed